HC Deb 16 December 1975 vol 902 cc541-2W
19. Mr. Ralph Howell

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what percentage of all persons employed by education authorities throughout the country are teachers.

Mr. Mulley

In June 1975 the percentage in England and Wales was 50. Many local education authority employees are part-time, and it is estimated that in terms of equivalent full-time service the percentage was 56. About three-quarters of the employees who are not teachers are manual workers.

31. Dr. Edmund Marshall

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science how many teachers are at present employed in the public sector of education in England and Wales; and what is his estimate of the corresponding figure for each of the next three years.

Miss Joan Lestor

549,000, expressed as full-time equivalents in September 1975, excluding part-time teachers in further education. Figures for the next three years will depend upon teacher wastage and further public expenditure.

32. Mr. Stonehouse

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what is the present number of qualified teachers who are unemployed; what has been the increase during the past year; and if he will make a statement about the future training programme of teachers in the light of these figures.

Mr. Mulley

In September 1975, the latest date for which figures are available, 3,911 unemployed school teachers were recorded at employment offices in England and Wales. This is 1,598 more than a year earlier. After consultations with the Advisory Committee on the Supply and Training of Teachers I reduced the intake to courses for non-graduate initial training in 1976 from 23,000 to 20,000. The Committee will continue to keep the numbers for later years under review.

35. Mr. Freud

asked the Secretary of State for Education and Science what estimate he has of the number of teachers likely to graduate from colleges of education in 1976; how this compares with the previous three years; and what is the estimated proportion of these likely to find immediate employment in the teaching profession.

Mr. Mulley

The numbers of students successfully completing courses of initial training in England and Wales are estimated to be:

1973 42,000
1974 41,600
1975 40,000
1976 37,600

A high proportion, but not all, of those who complete their courses next year and seek employment in the teaching profession are likely to find it. Uncertainty about trends in wastage from and re-entry to the profession rules out precise estimates.